Strong sleeves vs Froning 7mm sleeve

This is a comparison between the Strong sleeves and the Froning 7 mm sleeve including pros, cons and alternatives. Follow the links for more details.

Overview and review of the Froning Rehband 7mm knee sleeve

These are the best knee sleeves for all around usage at $49.99 a sleeve. Take that these are sold individually and not in pairs.

Overview of the Froning knee sleeve

The Rehband RX 7mm Knee Sleeve from the Froning series is probably the safe bet when it comes to sleeves. For the price, you get a thick sleeve with a wide range of options in size. With Froning branding, you still get some inspiration from a top Crossfit athlete while the sleeve itself is produced by the main vendor in the sleeve industry for sports. Take care that these are sold individually and not in pairs. The specifications of the Rich Froning 7mm are:

Sold Individually
7MM thick SBR / Neoprene blend flex-material
Size Options: XXS-XXL (See Chart Below)
Color: Black & Red

This is the sleeve for Crossfit champions.

Size of the Froning knee sleeve

These are the sizes that are available for the Rich Froning knee sleeve. Measure at the upper calf about 10 cm down from your knee cap.

XXS 29 - 31cm
XS 31 - 33cm
S 33 - 35cm
M 35 - 37cm
L 37 - 40cm
XL 40 - 43cm
XXL 43 - 46cm

This is one of the widest ranges of sizes you can find for knee sleeves in the current market.

Pros of the Froning knee sleeves

The pros of the Froning knee sleeves are:

Wide range of size options
Reliable vendor
Only vendor with Froning products for sleeves

Rehbandis one of the powerhouses in the area of knee and elbow protection across all sports. They have teamed up with one of the most successful athletes in Crossfit to provide a solid sleeve option for Crossfitters and strongmen.

The cons of the Froning knee sleeves

The cons of the Froning knee sleeves are:

Not sold in pairs
Price
Design

The Froning 7MM sleeves are unfortunately not sold in pairs. This is an exemption from the standards for other vendors. This drives the price up. In addition, some also might think that the design of the Rehband sleeves might be a little outdated. Rogue and Rocktape have made some efforts here to push the envelope for the industry. Especially Rogue with their custom designs from the Zeus engine.

Alternatives to the Froning knee sleeve

Alternatives to the Froning knee sleeve are:

The Dan Bailey clang and Bang knee sleeves come in 5mm with a grey design. The good news is that they come in pairs. If you are a Crossfitter who wants to support an athlete but do not want to pay double for protecting both of your knees, the Dan Bailey sleeves might be the option for you.

If your main goal is to get your One repetition maximum up, the X treme Sleeves from Mark bell might be just the right option for you. These sleeves have been designed very stiff so you get maximum support on your one-repetition maximum attempts. With this, they can be quite restrictive if you want to run and jump in them.

If you want to do your own design on a knee sleeve with medium thickness and support the custom Rogue knee sleeves are currently one of the options where you can upload your own design and get it delivered to your doorstep.

Summary for the Froning knee sleeve

The safest bet for overall quality, comfort, and support. This comes at the cost of not being able to buy in pairs.

Overview and review of the Strong Knee sleeves

The Strong knee sleeves come in at $80 and are the first attempt at seamless knee sleeves from Mark Bell. They are stiffer than regular sleeves but not as stiff as the Xtreme X Sleeve.

Overview of the Strong knee sleeves

The strong sleeves are the entry-level knee sleeves from Mark Bell designed for comfort and stability. With 7MM in thickness and level 3 neoprene, they are comparable to the sturdy upper range knee sleeves of other vendors like Rehband. This is based on Mark Bell's target group of powerlifters who usually need everything one step stiffer and thicker than other athletes as they give up mobility in a trade-off for strength. The main specification of the Strong Sleeve are:

7mm Thick
Level 3 Neoprene
Sold in pairs
Seamless design

This is a solid option for a beginning powerlifter who feels like Rehbandis not stiff enough for them. Especially when you weigh more than 200 pounds and want to powerlift you might want to consider entering the market with Mark Bell rather than with Rehband.

Sizing for the Strong knee sleeves

The Strong knee sleeve comes in different sizes. These are measured from the circumference of your knee when standing. The options are:

XS - 11" - 12"
S - 12" - 13"
M - 13" - 14"
L - 14" - 15"
XL - 15" - 16"
2XL - 16" - 17"
3XL - 17" - 18"
4XL - 18" - 19"

These are the numbers for the comfort fit. Add 1" if you use the competition fit.

Pros of the Strong sleeves

The pros of the strong sleeves are:

7mm Thickness
Level 3 Neoprene
Seamless design

The main idea with the Strong sleeves was to take the design of other 7mm knee sleeves in the market from SBD and Rehbandand improve it. The main difference is that the Strong sleeves have fewer seams and are therefore less error-prone. The design is still pretty heavy-handed and aimed at powerlifters. Maybe not the best solution for smaller individuals who want to move around as fast as possible while wearing sleeves. Here you may look for 3mm or 5mm options depending on whether you want to be active or you want to use the knee sleeve for rehabilitation after surgery/injury.

Cons of the Strong sleeves

The cons of the strong sleeves are

Price
Stiffness
Thickness

As Mark Bell aims at a smaller target group and the production of a seamless sleeve compared to one with seams as a bit more complex, the price is higher. If you want to pay the extra dollars for a 7mm knee sleeve aimed at powerlifters that is great. Otherwise, you might opt for Rehband.

The stiffness and thickness might work against the strong sleeves based on your use case. If you want to wear sleeves and still run and jump or just support your knee after injury 7mm thickness plus an emphasis on a tight git might be overkill. You do not want to get your knee out of place again after surgery, because the sleeve you bought to support it was too hard to get into. That is the very definition of overshooting the target.

For a 7mm sleeve, you will usually pay less with Rehband. Their designs have more seams and are inspired across disciplines rather than specifically for powerlifting.

Alternatives to the Strong sleeve

Alternatives to the Strong sleeve are

The Xtreme sleeve would be the option if you want to take it to the maximum for your one-repetition maximum attempts on the squat. This is the stiffest and thickest IPF approved knee sleeve currently on the market. If you are big, heavy, strong and do not care that much about mobility, the X is for you.

If you want to buy a 7mm knee sleeve but save a little money you can also go for the Rehbandoptions. One is in direct cooperation with Rich Froning in case you want to support him directly as an athlete or feel inspired by his logo on your sleeves.

Smaller and lighter athletes might find that a 7mm knee sleeve is an overkill for them.

Summary for the Strong sleeves

The strong sleeves from Mark bell are a good entry choice for anyone focused on powerlifting. Other athletes might want to go for 5mm versions from Rehband, depending on how much mobility they want.